Routes to LxC's Goals
Routes to LxC's Goals:
Some Suggestions From Binghamton University
1. Can some non-English readings be included in your syllabus as
recommended or substitute
required reading? In this way you can make the potential use and value
of materials
in
languages other than English visible to all students from the outset.
2. Could topics treated in LxC assignments be mentioned or introduced by
you or your
TAs,
or by the LRSs, during lectures, with follow-up in-class discussion
featuring LxC
participants?
3. Could you regularly invite the LRS or LxC participants to summarize for
the class
as a whole
what they've learned on a given topic in their LxC study-group discussions?
4. Could you require that each LxC study group make a formal in-class
presentation
on what
they have learned? This format, usually paired with an LxC-based term paper
requirement,
has
worked very well in previous LxC-supported courses.
5. If you cannot devote lecture time to LxC reports or discussion, and you
have discussion
sections led by TAs, could you get the TAs and LRSs to work together to
include LxC-based
course content in the discussion that occurs in these sections?
6. Can you include LxC-baced substitute multiple choice or essay questions
in your quizzes and exams (with the questions and sample answers provided
by the LRS)?
Three Points to Remember
1. LxC does not substitute language-instruction goals for the
existing instructional
goals of your course.
Although LxC participants will probably obtain linguistic gains, LxC
study-group discussion
focuses on content not form, and linguistic gains do not figure in the
evaluation
of student performance. LxC works in partnership with you, and your TAs,
if any, to ensure that LxC assignments and studygroup discussions, and any
other LxC-related
activities and events such as term papers or class reports, consistently
serve the
educational goa1s of your course.
2. The success of LxC depends critically on the attitude you express
toward it.
From the outset, all students in your course need to understand your views
regarding
the educational value, performance expectations, and concrete benefits of
the LxC
component(s) of your course. Students will participate, and LxC will
succeed, only
to the extent that your valuation of LxC comes through strongly and
clearly.
3. The LxC component(s) of your course can and should contribute to
the course-content
learning of all the students in your course.
All students, not just those participating in a given LxC study group, can
benefit from the subject matter included in LxC assignments, but this will happen only if you make it happen.